Your Journey & Mine :Discontinued:
by MidnightBallad
Summary: (Sequel to "Your Heart & Mine) Old enemies become new friends, and old legends are brought back to life. When Seto Kaiba has only bad intentions with this legend, and Yami good, it will be a race to see who can use it first.
1. Investigations

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own (from this chapter) Jemu and Tory.

**Reader Notes: **This is the sequel to "Your Heart & Mine". You do not really need to read "Your Heart & Mine" in order to understand the plot, however I do suggest that you read at least a little bit of it. If you DO want to know the plot of the first story but don't want to read it, ask through a review and I'll try to email you the basics.

**Review Notes: **NO FLAMES! Constructive criticism IS allowed, and I would actually appreciate it. This will help me to form the story better, but make it nice :D

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **I know that a bunch people have been waiting for a sequel to my first Yu-Gi-Oh story. So here it is! The chapters will be slightly shorter (perhaps), because four pages on MS Word really gets to me after a while. For the people who _have _read "Your Heart & Mine", I will be putting up some fan art soon. I also did make a website for it, but until I get some decent art up, that idea has been scrapped.

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**Chapter I: **

**Investigations**

_Kaiba Manor, Friday 10:15 p.m._

Seto Kaiba returned home from a very long, wet Friday at his office. His once sleek hair-do was messed up, his eyes were dark and full of weariness, and his butt hurt from not moving it for several hours at a time. Briefcase slung over his shoulder, Seto opened the door to his luxurious manor and stepped into the entrance hall, slipping off his coat as he did so. He was drenched from head to toe in water – results from a late-night thunderstorm.

Dropping his briefcase on the ground, Seto proceeded to the staircase, where he leant on the banister and called, 'Mokuba! Are you still awake?'

There was only silence. Sighing deeply, Seto went up the stairs, ready to fall asleep as he did so. When he passed his little brother's room, Seto poked his head in the door to check if Mokuba was awake but had not heard him. The raven-haired boy was dozing away on his bed, face buried into the unknown depths of his pillow. Seto smiled inwardly and closed the door as quietly as he could.

Eventually, Seto found his way to his room, flopping down on his double bed – which seemed softer than usual after sitting on a computer chair all day – and found himself reflecting on his week in a blur of computer bleeps, telephone calls and messages from his secretaries.

For the past week now, Seto had fallen deeply into a mystery that concerned Duel Monsters, as did most aspects of his daily life. It was an amazing discovery that involved some things called the 'Essence Items', duplicates of the six original Millennium Items.

Three months ago, Seto had had a run-in with one of the six Essence Items, the Essence Rod, owned by a young man whose soul did no longer belong to his word. Put simply, he was dead and not coming back.

A strange thought had struck Seto in the few days before he truly begun his research: were there any other Essence Items out there? Seto had asked a girl in his class who knew very well of these Essence Items, and she had answered him with a yes. Ever since that day, Seto had left school – no questions asked from the staff – to ensue the search for these Essence Items.

A week later, and he was no closer to finding these Essence Items. But his faithful worker, a young girl called Jemu, had found out that every one of the Essence Items were scattered around the world, and the only Item that was confirmed to be left in its original place was the Essence Puzzle; Egypt. The problem was, the other five Items had to be gathered with the Essence Puzzle before it could be used.

Once the Items were together, Seto planned to use the power of the Essence Puzzle to his satisfaction.

Seto grinned. _It's so good, being me... _He thought, before falling into a very deep sleep.

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_1:30 a.m._

Unfortunately, Seto's deep sleep did not last very long. He was awoken minutes later by a very annoying wringing in his hear. Giving a very loud groan of disapproval, Seto slammed his hand down on his little black mobile and held it to his ear.

'Seto here.' Seto muttered, kneading his forehead. A tinny female's voice said to him, 'Kaiba-san?'

Seto was immediately awake. He knew the voice on the end of the phone – it was Jemu, the girl who had been researching the Essence Items for him. 'I'm listening, Jemu.'

'_Hai _(yes), I can tell.' Jemu said, laughing under her breath. 'I just found something very interesting in an online auction.'

Seto held his breath. 'Don't tell me...'

'The guy is called Akogi, and owns a massive software company like you, but it's a little more popular in America. Anyhow, Akogi has a photograph here of some rather odd-looking scales he says he owns.'

Seto opened a drawer on his bedside table, seizing a pen and a notebook that was riddled with scribbles already. 'How much does he want for them?'

Jemu began to quote something that had obviously come from a caption below the photograph of these scales. 'Akogi says that they are 'one of a kind Egyptian scales' that are worth at least...US nine hundred thousand dollars.'

Seto rolled his eyes, sitting up in bed. 'Is he serious?'

'_Hai. _Full of greed, if you ask me. Are you willing to pay this much, would you like me to bid for you?' Jemu asked. Seto could hear her typing away on her computer.

'No, that won't be necessary. I'm not even sure if these scales are _really _the Essence Scales. Does he have a contact number?' Seto asked, pen poised. Jemu answered him, 'Well, you can go to his office. 149, Baxter Street.'

Seto wrote this down, also saying, 'And just where is Baxter Street?'

'New York.' Jemu replied. 'Maybe you should just phone him?'

'No.' Seto said quickly. 'Jemu, I need you to book me the earliest flight to New York. I don't care what seats, what class – just get me there.'

'Okay, Kaiba-san, sit tight.' Jemu said. There was several minutes of computer noises, keyboard whacking and mouse clicking, before her voice came back over the phone. 'How about 3:30 p.m. this Sunday?'

'Anything earlier?'

'_Iie_, _sumimasen_ (no, sorry).' Jemu said, apologizing.

Seto flipped closed his notebook. 'That's okay. Just keep the website open and call me if any earlier flights come up.'

'_Sadaka _(sure),' Jemu answered. '_Ja mata _(see you).'

'See you later.' Seto hung up. He was quite confused why the girl constantly used Japanese, but Seto shrugged it off and went back to sleep.

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_Yugi's House / Game shop, Saturday 7:30 a.m._

Yugi Moto yawned as he woke up on his favourite day of the week. Lazy Saturday. Good old Saturday can be depended on for many things. Firstly, a good breakfast. Yugi could already smell his Grandpa's pancakes; or, the ones he had bought from the local store. Second, the phone call from one or two from his best friends.

As if hearing his thoughts, Yugi's phone by his computer wrung. Positively beaming, Yugi climbed out of bed and picked up the phone, bringing the receiver to his ear. 'Hello?' He said in an unusually bright voice.

'Yugi? Hey, it's Tory.'

'Tory?' Yugi asked, although there was still a smile on his face. Tory and Yugi had met three months ago after an incident that involved Tory's past and quite an astounding Egyptian scripture. 'Hi, I haven't spoken to you in a while.'

Tory laughed softly – it sounded awfully muffled. 'Yeah, I guess. Are you doing anything today?'

Yugi checked a pin-up calendar that hung from the wall. 'Well, Joey and I were going to go see a movie, but if this really is important...'

'That's okay. Joey can come too. I need to show you something quickly. My dad found a strange article in the newspaper.' Tory said. Yugi could actually hear her shuffling through the Saturday morning paper. 'Interested?'

Yugi nodded, even though Tory couldn't possibly see him. 'Sure. Joey might have a freak-out, but I'll tell him to lay off.'

Tory laughed again. 'Sounds great. I'll meet you at...the ice cream parlour, nine o'clock?'

'See you then.' Yugi hung up, just as his Grandpa walked in the door, holding a very wide plate of pancakes.

'Fresh from the frypan,' he said loudly. 'Get 'em while they're hot!'

Yugi licked his lips. 'Will do!'

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_Ice Cream Parlour, Saturday 9:00 a.m._

Joey gave a very loud, unhappy moan. 'Come _on_, Yugi! We had a whole day planned and now we have to wait around to see a _newspaper article_? I don't know about you, but I think Tory's just makin' up excuses to see you again.'

Yugi sighed, shaking his head. Somehow, Joey could not put down the fact that he and Tory – or, Yami and Tory – had gone out on something that seemed like a date. After that, Yami and Tory had called it quits, both agreeing that they were only 'going on like this' because of their previous life together.

Yugi pointed at the display of ice cream flavours by the counter. 'Hey, look...ice cream! On me, Joey!' He said, handing Joey his wallet.

'Really?' Joey said, distracted. 'Oh, sweet! I'll be back!' He got up and hurried toward the counter with drool practically falling from his mouth.

A bell above the door tinkled and a blonde-haired girl wearing silver sunglasses with a blue lens stepped into the parlour. She also wore a modest-length denim skirt and a Chinese-style shirt with paper crane patterns on it. Flicking gum off her white shoes, the girl searched the parlour until she found the boy with the tri-coloured hair she was looking for. Grinning, the girl went over to Yugi and stood next to his table.

'Well...do I need an invitation to sit down?' The girl asked, taking off her sunglasses to reveal one blue eye, one brown. Yugi grinned also. 'Hey, Tory! Joey's getting ice cream; sit next to him.'

Tory seated herself and opened a shoulder bag she had been carrying. She brought out a newspaper article – a part of it had been circled in red pen. 'Here 'ya go. Read the stuff in red.'

'Thanks.' Yugi took the paper and scanned the paragraph Tory had circled.

_Akogi Kuga is a successful Japanese teenager who works overseas in the United States. Recently, his company sponsored an archaeological dig in Egypt, in which Akogi unearthed a strange silver scale, marked with an Egyptian eye._

"_This is really quite an amazing discovery," Akogi says. "And I'd be all too happy to place this in the museum, or sell to someone who really would appreciate it."_

_Akogi is currently selling the Egyptian scales online for $US 900 000, such is their approximated value._

'Wow...' Yugi said sarcastically. 'Quite amazing.'

Tory rolled her eyes and slammed a hand down on the photograph in the middle of the newspaper. 'Look at the photo, you idiot.'

Yugi did. His eyes widened – there was a red-haired boy in his late teens holding up a sandy set of silver scales. Ones that looked very much like a certain Millennium Item...

Yugi looked at Tory. 'The Essence Scales.'

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**MidnightBallad: **That was kind of long. The other chapters won't be. So, how do you like the idea? It gets better, with eventual pairings (yay!). Review if you will – NO flames – and let me know if I should continue, or this story will become _dis_continued!


	2. Online, Offline

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own (from this chapter) Tory

**Reader Notes: **This is the sequel to "Your Heart & Mine", which doesn't _really _need to be read to understand the plot – just how my main OC (Tory) knows Yugi and such, and stuff about the Essence Items. And now for some messages:

**T-Bone, AuroranWings and Sylvia Viridian: **Glad to hear from you guys again! Advance the story of the Essence Items!

**Review Notes: **NO FLAMES! Constructive criticism IS allowed, and I would actually appreciate it. This will help me to form the story better, but make it nice :D

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **I kind of feel like I let you guys down with the boringness of the first chapter. Well, here's chapter two! New characters from the series will be coming soon – i.e. Marik – to add to the plot!!

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**Chapter II: **

**Online, Offline**

_Ice Cream parlour, 9:04 a.m._

Yugi and Tory just stared at the newspaper. So, it was true – there _were _other Essence Items out there. All the while, Yugi had supposed that their previous enemy, the owner of the destroyed Essence Rod, was bluffing. Maybe trying to scare them. But Yugi had been wrong, and now he knew that the world could be in danger again.

Joey sat down noisily on the plastic seat next to Tory. He looked at both she and Yugi strangely. 'Why the long faces?'

'This isn't good,' Tory muttered, ignoring Joey. 'If those Essence Scales fall into the wrong hands, then we're in trouble.'

'Essence Scales?' Joey asked, clueless. When Yugi didn't reply, he shoved a very big chocolate ice cream in his face. 'Ice cream makes it all better!'

Tory jumped to her feet, sliding past Joey. 'Sorry, Yugi, but I have to go.'

Yugi watched Tory as she left, calling, '_Where _are you going? Tory?'

Joey rolled his eyes and licked his chocolate mint ice cream. 'Girls...man, they're pathetic.'

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_Domino Streets, 9:10 a.m._

Tory was scanning the newspaper article again as she walked home. There was one part that took her interest: '_Akogi is currently selling the Egyptian scales online for $US 900 000, such is their approximated value_.' So, perhaps Tory could find out more about the auction of the Essence Scales on E-Bay.

Turning into a fairly empty street, Tory set off for home at a quick run. She didn't want to be out on the street of Domino all alone – she never even did that around her street. So, head held high and avoiding the eyes of strangers, Tory rounded another corner. She recognised this street; here stood the large game shop that Duke Deblin owned. Outside was Duke himself, opening the store for the day.

When Duke saw Tory, he waved. 'Hey, Tor. Were you waiting for me?'

'What?' Tory said, confused, when she realised that Duke meant waiting for him to open the game shop. 'Oh no.' She paused. 'Actually, Duke, you could save me a trip home. Can I use your computer?'

Duke opened the glass door to the shop wide. 'Be my guest. But you better buy something before you leave.' He said teasingly. Tory just smiled and went inside, taking off her blue-tinted sunglasses so that she could see properly. Duke flicked on the lights, and Tory was greeted with the sight of hundreds of shelves, each holding something to do with Duel Monsters, Dungeon Dice Monsters or another game.

Tory went behind the counter, sitting on a leather stool and booting up the computer. She quickly logged on to the internet, her fingers going crazy over the keyboard. Duke watched her apathetically.

Tory begun to search all the online auctions, typing in _Egyptian scales _in the searches, but she kept coming up with zero hits. Sighing, Tory consulted the newspaper again.

'Whatever you're looking for, you probably won't find it.' Duke said, going out the back of the shop. 'Have you got any idea how big those online auctions are?'

Tory went on in silence for a bit, her eyes scanning the screen until they hurt. With another sigh, Tory tried the last available option she could think of –

'Excuse me?'

Tory looked up into the dark purple eyes of a very tanned teen with plenty of spiky hair. She went pink instantly; not because of the guy's looks, but Tory knew what he wanted. 'Uh...I don't run the shop. You'll want to talk to Duke, he's out the back.'

Tory then noticed the guy reading the newspaper article she had, his head turned slightly to one side. He glanced up at Tory with a small smile on his face. 'Planning on buying that?'

'Ha! No, I...' Tory paused. 'I just want to see the idiots who bid on it, that's all.' As if she was going to tell this complete stranger why she was really on the site.

Surprisingly, the young man said, 'Ever heard the phrase "_the eyes are the soul's windows_" ?'

Tory frowned slightly. 'Yeah.'

'Well, I see through your eyes and I know you're lying.' The teen smiled at her again and eyed the Egyptian necklace that hung from her neck. It was very pretty – a brass plate holding a large crystal, one that never stayed the same colour. 'Interesting. Can I ask where you got that?'

Now this guy was asking too many questions. Tory raised her voice to shout, 'Duke! You have a customer!' Tory slid off the stool and did not even bother saying goodbye to the very inquisitive tanned teen.

A few seconds later, Duke came back inside his shop. Tory was gone, and her certainly didn't have any customers.

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_Domino backstreets, 9:30 a.m._

Tory went home at a brisk walk, trying not to look too concerned about the snoot in the game shop. Eventually, she shook it off and turned the last corner into her street –

Tory took one more step and then someone leapt out from behind her, one arm around her waist and one over her mouth. Tory didn't bother screaming, for no one would hear her anyway.

Instead, she struggled like hell.

The person behind her held tight and said in her ear, 'Don't struggle, I'm not intending on hurting you.'

Tory knew the voice instantly. She tried to speak to him, but the words came out muffled. Strangely, she wasn't too worried – this guy, whoever he was, obviously didn't want to hurt her. Tory didn't know how, but she knew that he was trying to be gentle.

The teen took his hand away from Tory's mouth just a bit. 'Where did you get that necklace?'

Tory answered quietly, 'It's a family heirloom that goes _way _back.'

'How far exactly?'

'If I told you, you would never believe me.'

'Oh, really?' He laughed. 'You may think I'm a sick guy who gets pleasure from attacking lone girls on the streets, but I'm not. Believe me, I know of that item you were searching for online.'

Tory went quite still. 'Really?' she asked hollowly. 'How?'

'Because, when I was a tomb keeper, I learnt of the duplicated Millennium Items. You were searching for the Essence Scales, weren't you?' The teen asked, a small smile slithering onto his face. Tory didn't say anything. Was this guy out to steal the Scales and use them wrongly?

'That's none of your business,' Tory hissed. 'I'm not letting your hands on those Scales.'

There was a laugh behind her. 'So, you think I'm going to steal the Scales? No, I want to tell you something else.' He spun Tory around so that she faced him. She blinked; eyes changed from blue and brown to green and white-blue. 'Not here, though.'

All that Tory saw next was darkness, and all she heard was nothing.

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_Unknown location, unknown time_

Tory awoke to feel a hand over her forehead. Instantly, the memory of being in the street with a complete stranger came back to her, and her eyes snapped open. Above her was the teenaged boy from the game shop, and without warning Tory smacked him square between the eyes with the palm of her hand. With a startled yelp, the teen left her vision.

Tory was so ticked, she rolled off the bed she laid on the grabbed the stupid guy by the hair and gave a very sharp tug. He shouted out, shoved his foot into her gut and pushed her off, slamming Tory against the bed.

'I don't want to hurt you,' the teen said sharply. 'I'll even give you my name, so that you can turn me in to the police later – Marik Ishtar.'

Tory groaned, eyes squeezed shut. 'What...the _hell..._do you want, Marik?'

Marik said quietly, 'I want you help you get these Scales. And I want to tell you about that Essence Tauk around your neck.'

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**MidnightBallad: **Hoorah for Marik! (**falls in plot hole**) Where the heck'd that come from? Anyway, thanks for the reviews everyone! Tell me what you think of it so far!


	3. Seto's Warning

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own (from this chapter) Tory, Akogi and Kontan.

**Replies to Reviews: **

**T-Bone: **Hoorah for Marik! It was kind of obvious that Tory held an Essence Item. More on that in this chapter.

**AuroranWings: **That sentence is...hard to explain. Just ignore it. Anyway, it's the good Marik! The evil one freaks me out.

**Sylvia Viridian: **Marik _did _kidnap Tory for a reason, don't worry.

**Review Notes: **NO FLAMES! Constructive criticism IS allowed, and I would actually appreciate it. This will help me to form the story better, but make it nice :D

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Apologies for the slowness of updating. It _is _Christmas though, so I'm kind of busy. Hopefully you guys will keep reading, though! Chapter three begins...

Yay! I got an Egyptian ankh for Christmas!

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**Chapter III: **

**Seto's Warning**

_Unknown location, unknown time_

Tory's hand flew up to the Crest of Evergiving around her neck. What was Marik talking about? It wasn't the Essence Tauk! Tory didn't know where _that_ was, but she certainly wasn't wearing it.

'Don't be stupid,' Tory fumed. 'The Essence Tauk is a necklace that would engulf the world in evil. And the necklace I'm wearing now _does not _do that.'

'You would like to think that, wouldn't you? But haven't you noticed that your Essence Tauk –'

'Crest of Evergiving.'

Marik gave her a very cold look, one that felled Tory to silence. He went on, getting to his feet and continuing his previous sentence. 'It appeared at the same time as your brother's Essence Rod.'

Tory spat, 'The Pharaoh created it.'

'But it was infused with the same evil power as the Essence Rod. You just haven't release the bad side of the Essence Tauk yet.'

This was enough for Tory. She climbed to her feet and shouted, 'What would you know about me or my Crest?! You weren't there when the Crest was created, so you wouldn't know a damn thing!'

'I know more than you think I do!' Marik shouted, his face tinged pink in anger. 'Once upon a time I was a tomb keeper, so keep that in mind!'

Tory went silent. She did not want to argue anymore. 'So...my _Essence Tauk _has a bad side that I haven't released. Did you really have to kidnap me to tell me that?'

Marik couldn't help but smile. 'Actually, as soon as I found out Akogi had the Scales and then found out _you _had the Tauk, I knew it wasn't a chance of luck. The Essence Items are being called back to Egypt by the Essence Puzzle, the master item. And I happen to know where another Essence Item is, I even have a photograph of it. But I couldn't just ask you to come to I? You'd probably think I was going to murder you or something.' He laughed afterward.

Tory folded her arms across her chest. 'Well, you could have asked nicely, instead of punching me in the head, or whatever you did to me, and then stowing my away to your little shack. I am a nice person you know, I don't need to be kidnapped to be asked questions.' She paused, gazing around the dingy, dark apartment. After a few seconds, she turned back to Marik. 'This other item you know about – where is it?'

Marik went over to an expensive-looking set of drawers in the corner, flicking on a lamp as he did so. He slid open a drawer, shifted through a few things, before taking out a leather-bound photo album. Marik flicked through that, before taking out a black and white photograph and walking over to Tory. 'Don't ask where I got it, just look.'

Tory took the old photograph gently and gazed upon it. The photo seemed to be of the United States Army, as each man was dressed in camouflage gear and holding sleek, black rifles and pistols. Tory scanned the photo for a full minute, before a man in it caught her eye. He was quite handsome, with spiky hair and a grin that was worth a million dollars. But his left eye caught her attention – in fact, his eye was made of some sort of metal, perhaps silver, and was shaped like an Egyptian eye. The Essence Eye.

Waving the photograph in Marik's face, Tory asked, 'Who is this man?'

'Kontan Oshitaka, a man of wisdom who had an unfortunate run-in with a certain Essence Eye – by now, I'm pretty sure he's willing to give it up.'

Tory thought about this for a bit. She had to get to Akogi, who was selling the Essence Scales, and then move on to Kontan without attracting too much attention from a certain teenaged millionaire.

Marik slid the photograph from between Tory's fingers. 'I can take you to both Kontan and Akogi, so we –'

Tory cut him off. '_We_? Excuse me, I work with one other person, and one other person only...' Tory didn't look at Marik as she said the next few words. 'I'll have to ask him about it.'

'Alright then. See you soon, then.' Marik said, watching Tory leave. He smiled behind her back. It was not an evil smile – no, it was quite a different smile.

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_Domino backstreets, 11:23 a.m._

Tory walked home in a certain state – bending over slightly. After Marik had thrown her against the hard, semi-wooden bed, Tory had felt something painful happen. She hoped that her back wouldn't play up when she went to see Akogi.

Tory wasn't too far from home when she heard a car driving slowly behind her. Frowning, Tory sped up, just a little bit. As if her day wasn't bad enough, it seemed as though someone _else _was following her. She heard the car pull up next to her, keeping at a steady pace so that it stayed by Tory's side always. Tory risked a glance out of the corner of her eye, and saw a steely-eyed Seto Kaiba watching her from behind the window. Tory pretended not to see him, and kept walking –

'Tory,' Seto said, his window sliding down. 'I know you can see me. And I know yourself and Yugi have found out about the Essence Scales. And I _also _know that Marik knows something about this too.'

Tory kept walking, as Seto's limousine kept driving slowly. 'Essence Scales?' she asked. 'What're you talking about?'

Seto's cold eyes narrowed. 'Don't pretend you don't know. I saw you leave Deblin's game shop, and I saw Marik drag you off the street.'

Tory's face broke into a grin, and she sped up even more, so that the driver of the limo also had to speed up.

'You're going to go after the Essence Items, aren't you?' Seto asked Tory with a satisfied chortle. 'Of all the people I know, Tory, I think you're the most predictable.'

'Get this straight, Kaiba!' Tory said, stopping. The limo's wheels screeched as it came to a sudden stop. Tory stepped in toward the window, eyes hidden behind the blue lens of her sunglasses. 'I want these Items together so that I may destroy them, seeing as my last plan didn't work. And I plan to destroy them so that _you _can't use them.'

Seto leant out the window and said acidly, 'It's a race, then. I'm going to New York tomorrow, so good luck trying to head me off.'

Tory played with the Essence Tauk between her fingers. 'I already have the Essence Rod – or part of it, at least – and the Essence Tauk. So far, I'm ahead of you, Kaiba.'

Seto gaped at the necklace hanging from Tory's neck. His eyes watched it like a cat watching fish in a bowl. 'The Essence Tauk? So, I guess that scumbag Marik told you. No matter, at least I have efficient ways to getting to New York. You, on the other hand, do not.' Seto began to wind his window up electronically. 'Good luck.' He said, as the window closed all together. The limousine sped up, leaving Tory alone in the streets.

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_Yugi's House / Game shop, 3:40 p.m._

Yugi and Joey had gone their separate ways from the movies earlier that day, and now Yugi sat in his room, contemplating what was going to happen with the Essence Scales. He knew that Tory would want to go get them before someone else, but he didn't know how he and Tory were going to get to New York. Yugi didn't know Tory's parents personally, but he knew that they'd worry if their daughter went missing for quite a while. Yugi's own grandpa probably wouldn't even have second thoughts on it.

Yugi was still thinking over this in his head when his phone wrung. In surprise, Yugi fell off his bed, a large bruise quickly forming on his knee. Cursing and rubbing the bruise, he hopped over to the phone and answered it quite rudely. 'Yes, what?'

A tinny voice said, 'Oh, bad time, Yugi?'

'Tory? Where have you been all day?'

Tory sighed over the phone. 'Here and there. I...ran into someone.'

Yugi could sense, by the way Tory had told him, that she wanted him to ask about this 'someone'. Rolling up his pant's leg to inspect the bruise, Yugi asked her, 'And this someone would be?'

Tory hesitated before answering. 'Do you know a guy by the name of Marik Ishtar?'

Yugi spun around, as if Tory was behind him. In doing so, he whacked his good knee on the end of his desk, and he wailed, eyes watering. Tory sounded quite worried, and Yugi snuffled into the phone as he answered with a 'yeah'.

'He told me something today,' Tory said very quietly. 'He told me that...Yugi, can I please speak to Yami?'

Sighing, Yugi switched forms, in the flash of an eye, with the older, much more mature Yami. Yami was not exactly used to talking on the phone, but he tried his best. 'I'm listening, Tory.'

'Yami – when you created the Crest of Evergiving three thousand years ago, did it have any...problems?'

Yami was bewildered. He had created the Crest of Evergiving to perfection under the watchful eyes of one of his priests. 'What problems are you speaking of?'

'Is there a bad side to the Crest?'

Yami gazed out the window in thought. The sky was a pale blue, dotted with fluffy white clouds. 'There is a bad side to everything, Tory. Why?'

'Because Marik said that the Crest of Evergiving is _really _the Essence Tauk – and we all know that the Essence Items are evil.' Tory said, voice small over the phone. 'Before you speak again, there's more: Marik said he knows where the Essence Eye is, and that he can get us there. If we go looking for the Essence Items, Marik wants to come.'

Yami didn't know what to think. Marik was supposed to be a good man now that the evil spirit within him was gone. So what did he want with the Essence Items? Whatever it was, Yami knew he'd have to sit it out and wait. '...Why not? I do not know how we're going to get to New York, but perhaps Marik does. If he proves that he can help us and not steal the items from under our noses, I think that he has the right to come. Besides, he does have a Millennium Item (o), which makes him – in a way – bound to the Essence Items.'

Tory only said to Yami's words, 'Alright, but we have to leave tomorrow. Turns out that Seto's also after the Essence Scales. Marik will come to one of us about it soon.'

'It's settled then. It'll be our journey, Tory.' Yami knew that Tory would be going pink now. On the other end of the line, Tory smiled and _did _go pink.

'So it is...see you tomorrow morning. Goodnight, Yami.' Tory hung up the phone before Yami replied. Even though Tory didn't want to admit it, she knew that, deep down inside, Yami still cared about her greatly.

-End Chapter III-

**MidnightBallad: **Sorry, slow chapter update. Anyway, review, review! I'm glad that you all like the story so much. The plot will become faster paced later on, with plenty of action scenes – hopefully. Later!

- Happy Holidays!


	4. The Wait to New York

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own (from this chapter) Mrs. Shizutzi (the maid) and Jemu.

**Replies to Reviews: **

**Ayame akakaru Kaiba: **A lot of people were/are confused about Marik. I used some info my friend gave me, which was that Marik became good eventually – if not, then I'm doing it anyway! You have every right to question my story, and I'm happy to answer!

**AuroranWings: **Yami is too symbolic for his own good, haha!

**MiStraLL: **The time frame is...umm...I haven't got a clue. It'd have to be AFTER the Battle City Tournament, but before they go to Egypt. So...let's just say AFTER the Battle City Tournament, but with a few tweaked things.

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Apologies for the slow update! I had MAJOR virus trouble! Anyway, here it is!

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**Chapter IV: **

**The Wait to New York**

_Kaiba Manor, Sunday 2:20 a.m._

Seto was in his room, packing a small amount of clothing into a suitcase, emblazoned with a gold 'KC'. Scattered on his bed was his trusty laptop, his phone, a notepad that held the address to Akogi's office and another, very flat suitcase, also emblazoned with 'KC'. Sitting inside of that suitcase was US$900, 000 – all in one hundred dollar bills.

A single light lit the young millionaire's room, casting very long shadows across the walls and across Seto's face. He had been up early the previous morning, and now he was, once again, up early. The only thing that kept him awake was a short dose of caffeine every now and again, and the cook singing noisily downstairs in a shrill opera voice. Gods, what were his employees thinking nowadays?

At last, with everything packed, Seto slammed his suitcase shut and zipped it up, which allowed the doorway to be seen. Standing there was Mokuba, looking white dazed and tired.

'Mokuba? Shouldn't you be asleep?'

Mokuba yawned, stepping into the room. 'How can I, when Mrs. Shizutzi is singing like that?' He crawled onto Seto's bed, flopping down like a dead cat. 'I'm beat. Where are you going tomorrow?'

Seto put his suitcase on the floor and slid it beneath his bed. 'Business, as usual. Mrs. Shizutzi will look after you.'

Mokuba yawned again, eyes falling on the silver case that held Akogi's money. 'Hey, what's in there?'

'Not for your eyes, Mokuba.' Seto said, also picking up the case. He paused – that sounded rather wrong. Mokuba was too tired to care, and was already sound asleep, arms spread out to the side, snoring loudly. Shaking his head, Seto picked up his little brother and took him back to his bedroom, tucking him into his bed and gazing around his room. Mokuba's computer hummed away quietly, and Seto sighed quietly. He hated leaving his little brother again – he felt he was away from Mokuba all too often – but this was a very important business trip, and perhaps Seto could retire very early.

Yeah. Good idea.

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_Tory's House, Sunday 7:45 a.m._

Tory was still fast asleep when her slim, silver mobile went off very loudly. Slapping a hand to her face and stretching her jaw down low, Tory rolled onto her side, reading the text message, still half-asleep:

_Meet me outside of Deblin's game shop with Yugi Moto at eight o'clock._

'The heck?' Tory muttered, closing her eyes again. Who wanted to tell her that this early in the morning, when she should still be sleeping? And then something clicked in her head: Marik.

Tory sat up in bed, her brown and black cat curled up in a ball at the end of her bed, purring softly. Tory scratched her on the head, before changing into casual clothing – dark jeans, off-the-shoulder brown shirt decorated with beaded patterns; white sport shoes. Tory could never be bothered to match her shoes with her outfit, but her jeans were so long that her shoes could barely be seen anyway. Slipping another pair of sunglasses on – these ones silver with dark red lenses – Tory made her way downstairs, where her mother was baking pancakes. She was a tall woman, in her late forties, with spiky blonde hair and wide brown eyes.

'Morning, Tor. I'm making pancakes!'

Tory sniffed the sweet food. 'Great, but I need to go. I forgot that I was meeting Emily early to go to the eight o'clock ice skating session.'

'What?' Tory's mum said. 'No, breakfast first!'

Tory just ran out the door, picking up her CD player "Diskman" as she ran. Playing in the Diskman was a song called "A Little Too Late", and it was sung by one of Tory's idols:

_It's a little too late for you to say  
That I'm a little too young to feel this way_

'cause I just wanna be loved just wanna be heard  
Be lost in the feeling standing here  
At the door to my life  
Now that day has arrived so loud and clear  
You'll hear me singing...

Tory made for Yugi's house at a sprint.

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_Kaiba Manor, 7:50 a.m._

Many people had been receiving phone calls today. Seto received one too, from his young secretary Jemu. It was a very stressful phone call.

'Kaiba-san! Serious problem!' Jemu had said worriedly into the phone, so fast that Seto had needed Jemu to repeat the sentence.

'What is it?' Seto had asked, freezing whilst typing up some work documents. 'Please tell me it can be fixed.'

'Someone has bid on those Scales.'

Seto was quite stunned. '...How much?'

A pause. 'Nine hundred and fifty thousand.'

Seto shook his head. Looks like he would have to boot up the price of his own bid by fifty thousand himself. 'Jemu, I want you to bid for me, and leave this message: _Mr. Seto Kaiba will be coming to New York this Sunday. He will see Akogi then, with cash. He is willing to pay without signing anything._ Got that?'

Furious typing on a keyboard, a quick answer. '_Hai_, _hai_ (yes, yes). it done, Kaiba-san. _Sayonara _(goodbye).'

'Thank you.' Seto hung up. Who was the crazy idiot who had bid for the Scales beside himself?

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_Outside Duke Deblin's game shop, 8:00 a.m._

Yami and Tory awaited Marik outside Duke's game shop. The day was not exactly pleasant: rain fell lightly, making the sky glitter; clouds were dark and hung low, obscuring the highest skyscrapers. Black umbrellas held by residents bobbed up and down in the streets. Yami didn't mind getting wet – he'd been much wetter.

'He's taking his sweet time.' Tory said lowly, brushing a wet streak of hair from her face. Her sunglasses clouded her vision, so she took them off and shoved them in the back of her pocket. 'For someone who so desperately wants to come with us, he's not very good at showing it.'

Marik suddenly materialised out of thin air. Tory screamed, running into Yami, who was slammed up against Duke's front window. The teen inside gave Yami the finger, obviously telling him to get lost.

'Good morning, Tory.' Marik's eyes slid over to Yami. 'You too, Pharaoh.'

Yami just raised an eyebrow.

'Okay,' Tory said almost breathlessly. 'You say you can get us to New York, Marik. So...can you?'

Marik spun something between his hands – the Millennium Rod. 'Of course I can. I can get you _back _before dinner, too.'

Yami folded his arms across his chest. 'Just how are you going to do so? Teleport us there?' He smiled afterward. 'Can you even _do _that?'

Marik nodded. Tory went still.

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_Airport, 2:50 p.m._

Seto Kaiba awaited his plane to New York later that day. He sat in the waiting lounge, holding his briefcase with the money for the Essence Scales in it. Seto was yearning to get on that plane and get to New York.

'I'll beat you to it, Tory...' Seto whispered to himself, smiling sinisterly. 'No matter what you do, I'll always be one step ahead.'

The overhead speakers made a _pong-pong _noise. A woman spoke over the radio, '_Your attention please. Flight 94 to New York is now boarding at Gate 6._'

Seto got to his feet, taking his briefcase with him. He remembered the fuss he'd gone through to get it onto the plane without having to put it in with his other luggage. But then again, few people argue with a millionaire, who could crash the airport's computer system in the click of a mouse if he chose to.

-End chapter IV-

**MidnightBallad: **I apologize for these chapters being short. I'll try and make them longer, alright? Thank you for the reviews everyone!


	5. Akogi Kuga

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own (from this chapter) Tory and the little kid, Kevin. And Akogi.

**Replies to Reviews: **

**Ayame akakaru Kaiba: **I think you're the person who said the thing about the Millennium Rod. Anyway, I figured that since Yami defeated Marik's bad self, the Rod didn't have any evil spirit in it and a whole bunch of other powers. And...sorry about the chapters. Eeek!

**AuroranWings: **I was sittin' at the computer for two hours trying to get rid of the virus.

**T-Bone: **About Marik...you'll never know! Bwahaha!

**Sylvia Viridian: **Hehe...good on 'ya Kaiba.

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **I AM SO SORRY I UPDATED SO SLOWLY! I HAVE BEEN SO BUSY OVER THE HOLIDAYS IT'S NOT FUNNY! YOU MAY ATTACK ME NOW! Ahem...read on...

By the way, this chapter rated PG-13 for brief use of guns, although I'm not sure if that makes a real difference.

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**Chapter V: **

**Akogi Kuga**

It was quite a long way to New York from Domino (A/N: If someone can tell me how long it is from Japan to America, then...yeah), but Seto didn't mind. He went about sleeping, reading, and mentally counting the money for Akogi in his briefcase.

Right now, he felt he was winning the race to the Essence Scales – actually, he felt as though he were flogging Tory to it.

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Tory awoke with a start, the black dots before her eyes fading away, until she could see Yami and Marik standing over her. Coughing roughly, Tory sat up, rubbing her head. The world danced in front of her.

'Where am I?'

Marik pointed to a banner above what looked like an airport departure gate. It was blazing with silver letters: _Welcome to New York_!

'That answer your question?'

Tory was very confused. Coughing again, she asked, 'What _can't _that Millennium Rod of yours do, Marik?'

Marik seemed to dwell on it for a moment, before he took Tory by the hand and pulled Tory to her feet. Tory quickly shook him off and gazed around.

'Where to now?' Yami asked, arms folded. Suddenly, the trio heard heavy footsteps behind them, and they all spun around. Behind them were, quite simply, men like bears wearing very expensive-looking black suits. Each of them grinned.

'Uh...hi?' Tory said. Not as a greeting – as a question.

'We have been sent by Master Kaiba,' one man began. 'To...how can I put this nicely...slow you down?'

Yami grabbed both Tory and Marik by the back of their shirts. 'We'll be off, then.'

And then they just ran.

Seconds later, a barrage of gunfire ripped their way, and other people began to scream, hiding beneath seats and in shop doorways. Bullets bounced off the wall, but the trio just kept running, the bear-like men hot on their heels.

'Where do we go?' Tory yelled over the noise of screams and bullets being fired.

Then a trolley bearing the weight of six or seven suitcases came wheeling across the floor, its driver a short boy of only seven years old. His eyes opened wide at the look of the men with guns. Tory, Yami and Marik jumped the trolley, and moments later they heard a child scream. Tory paused, gazing over her shoulder at the seven year old that had been wheeling the trolley.

He was being held at gunpoint by one of the men.

'Stop, if you value this kid's life!' He shouted, the boy beginning to whimper and cry.

'D-don't lemmie d-die!' the boy stuttered.

Tory turned to Yami and Marik, but they were gone. Gritting her teeth, Tory spun around, taking her Duel Monster's deck from her pocket. 'What's your name, kid?'

The boy's chin wobbled. 'Kevin.'

'Kevin? Okay, Kevin: don't move.' Tory picked out one of her cards, throwing it through the air – it exploded in a flash of golden electricity, and Tory said quickly, 'Thunder Mage: take that guy out!'

The red-haired, purple-dressed semi-Dark-Magician-Girl card brought forth a very long sceptre, and it brimmed with lightening. The man holding Kevin screamed as he was struck, and Kevin was thrown into the trolley of bags. Crying again, Tory went over to him and crouched over his trembling body. 'Kevin, I need you to get out of here, okay?'

Nodding in a somewhat stunned manner, Kevin got to his feet and was out of there faster than a hare being chased by a fox. Tory stepped away from the trolley, only to run into one of the black-suited men. She could only gasp as the man punched her square in the face and she dropped down, almost invisible amongst the bags.

'Hey.' Someone said.

The man turned around, and received a very hard kick in the gut from Marik. Groaning, the man fell to the ground, clasping his stomach very tightly in his arms.

The last man raised his gun, its crosshair falling on Marik, who turned just as the bullet raced toward him –

And it just stopped, covered in a thick layer of ice. The air behind it was glittering with ice. Looking confusedly at the bullet, Marik touched it, and it fell out of the air. He didn't waste another second: he smashed the last of Kaiba's cronies over the head with his Millennium Rod, and he fell to the ground with a river of spit running from his mouth.

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Seto arrived in New York soon after Yami, Marik and Tory, and was surprised to see security guards running all over the place. He was also surprised to see bullet marks on the walls, and three familiar men lying on the ground, groaning. One of the men had been singed by something, his face blackened and clothing ripped to shreds.

Gazing at his cronies, Seto went around the paramedics that had arrived at the scene, and noticed small dribbles of blood had marked the ground. There must have been a brawl between his men and the people he'd sent them after.

Smirking, Seto made his way to his personally booked limousine, ready to go strike a deal with Akogi.

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Akogi's office was floor 25 of 50 in his skyscraper, a glittering block of sky blue tinted windows and silvery walls. It looked as though Akogi was a very rich man, and wasn't afraid to show it off. He even had security guards standing in sleek black uniforms at his doors, pump-action machine guns slung over their shoulders, anti-flash sunglasses covering their scowling eyes. As soon as Seto went to enter the building, they asked Seto the million-dollar question:

'Excuse me, sir, do you have an appointment?'

Seto gave them steely-eyed looks. 'I am here to consult Mister Akogi Kuga about the scales he is selling online. I left a message with my bid, m name is Seto Kaiba.'

The men fell away from Seto within seconds. 'So sorry, sir. Akogi will see you now.' They knew who Seto was and they didn't want to get in his way.

Seto went into the building – it looked ultra-modern, with white walls and a steel desk where a secretary was chewing on her pen. She looked up at Seto as he entered, giving his a dazzling smile. 'Good day, sir. Can I ask your name?'

'Seto Kaiba.'

The secretary mouth a long 'ooh' and said, 'You're the man who bid, aren't you? He'll see you now.'

Seto nodded and made his way to the glass elevator, which shot him up twenty-four levels before he reached the floor that belonged to Akogi. At the exit of the elevator stood two more guards, each carrying heavy-looking machine guns. They stepped aside as Seto entered.

Akogi Kuga looked up from his desk. Seto was surprised that Akogi was actually quite young – only about seventeen or eighteen. He observed Seto with bright green eyes, peering over a stack of papers in his hands. He wore mostly black, and a pair of black sunglasses was perched on top of his spiky red hair.

'This is Seto Kaiba,' one of the guards said. 'The man that bid on your scales.'

Akogi's face lit up, his green eyes sparkled. 'Well then, this is a pleasant surprise. When I read that note from your secretary, I thought I was dreaming. The millionaire Seto Kaiba bidding on a set of scummy old Egyptian scales.'

Seto smiled. 'They have value to me, that's all I'll say.' He held out his briefcase. 'Here's your money, in exchange for those scales.'

Akogi stood up, a large smile spreading across his Japanese-American face. 'Kaiba, you have made me a happy man. Let us go upstairs, my friend.'

He clapped Seto on the back as they made for the elevator. They went up another few stories, Akogi explaining how he had found the scales on a dig in Egypt, and how an English museum wanted to buy the scales from him. Seto was only mildly interested: he just wanted to see the scales for himself.

_Ping_!

'Here we are,' Akogi said. 'The security isn't too tight around it...I doubt that anyone's too interested in these.'

_You'd be surprised_... Seto thought as he entered the room. He froze. There were green laser-beams everywhere, which obviously could set off an alarm. He glanced at Akogi. 'Not too tight?'

Akogi grinned. 'Not too tight by my standards, anyway.' He punched in a sixty-character-long code into a computer on the wall, and the beams vanished. Seto went into the middle of the room, where the Essence Scales, still encrusted with sand, sat on a black stand with a glass hood over it.

'You can just lift that off,' Akogi said from the back of the room. 'But be careful, please.'

Seto did what Akogi had said, and gazed upon the Essence Scales. Seto could feel the magic pulsing around them, and he held his breath. And then he smiled – he'd beaten Tory to the scales.

Turning around, Seto asked Akogi the main question. 'How much?'

Akogi narrowed his bright green eyes. 'About a million.'

Seto held out his briefcase again. 'Done.'

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Tory was lying on a park bench, eyes closed, dry blood hiding just above her forehead. The punch from Seto's men had not only knocked her out, but left her feeling very sleepy indeed. Right now, her head was rested on Yami's lap, and she dreamt of nothing but getting her hands on the scales. But in the back of her mind, something told her that she was too late.

-End chapter V-

MidnightBallad: Once again, apologies for slow update. Also, sorry for typos that'll appear in this chapter – I was in a rush to get it done for you guys.

Later!


	6. I Can Help You

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own all of my original characters. Oh yeah, I own the Thunder Mage monster too!

**Replies to Reviews: **

**AuroranWings: **Yes...slow them down. That's it... **::evil grin::** Kaiba's a weirdo, I agree.

**Ayame akakaru Kaiba**Perfect chapter? Well, thank you. He wasn't supposed to kill them...just slow them down. Of course, that didn't really matter to those thugs. Tory can also summon a monster without a duel disk because her Essence Tauk allows her to do so.

**Sylvia Viridian: **When you say 'Kura-kun'...are you talkin' about Akogi? Because that question shall be answered now.

**T-Bone: **Yep, Akogi's way too thick! Akogi's name is Japanese, so it'd be pronounced in...three different syllables, if you know what I mean – I did Japanese at school so it's no problem for myself. Tory's not psychic (I can't spell it either), she's just one of those people o.0

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Here's a new chapter for my reviewers. Enjoy it! A very special appearance by...someone...in the next chapter!

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**Chapter VI:**

"**I Can Help You"**

Tory sat up, frowning slightly. 'Where'd our spiky-haired Egyptian man go?'

Yami laughed softly. 'Are you talking about me, or Marik?'

Tory laughed too. Yami seemed to have dug out a small sense of humour since their last story together. Tory got up off the bench, gazing around for Marik. She saw him sitting by a large pond, where a few ducks were swimming around.

'I'll be back.' Tory said, going over to him. She wasn't sure if she could trust Marik – but he _had _bought her here without delay – then again, Yami said he was known to be a little strange.

Marik looked up as Tory stepped up behind him. He noticed that her eyes changed from blue to brown as the sun hit them. 'Hi.'

Tory nodded back to Yami. 'We have to get going. Kaiba may not be here yet, but we still have to hurry.' She doubted every word she said.

Marik was quickly off the subject. 'Whatever. You don't look too well.'

'I don't see why you should care.' Tory said coldly. Marik just held his hands up in defeat and stood up. He stretched and said, 'I guess I have to thank you for the incident in the airport.'

A raised eyebrow from Tory. 'What?'

'The bullet – when it froze. You did that, didn't you? You summoned one of your Duel Monsters like you did the Thunder Mage.' He smirked. 'Impressive, I didn't think you would be able to work the power of your Essence Tauk so fast.'

Tory gave him a look. And then she said, 'I've owned it for a long time, both in this life and the previous. You can be certain I can use it. As for freezing the bullet...no problem.'

She and Marik went back to Yami, who was on his feet and talking to an old man walking through the park. He seemed to be giving Yami directions to Akogi's building. Yami nodded and went up to the other two.

'Its just down the street,' he said. 'Apparently Akogi doesn't like those who haven't made an appointment.'

Tory grinned. 'Yeah? I think we can manage.' The grin was nice and evil.

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'Do you have an appointment?' The receptionist at Akogi's building asked. Marik and Yami groaned silently, but Tory kept her cool.

'I am the granddaughter of...Mister O'Brian – he bid on the scales Akogi but on the Internet. Just last night, he bid. But he's ill, got a crooked leg and wanted me and to come talk to Akogi about it. He's offering more than a million dollars for them.'

The receptionist obviously knew nothing of Seto Kaiba already purchasing the Essence Scales, and said, 'Okay, then. Go on up to level twenty-five.'

'Thanks.' Tory said, hurrying off the elevator with Yami and Marik. She gave a loud sigh as she entered and the doors slid shut.

'Nice work.' Marik commented.

'Thanks, I didn't think she'd fall for it.'

_Ping_! Level 25.

'Here we go.' Yami said, stepping into the office. The guards glared down at the trio, and Akogi rotated slightly on his chair. He gave them a tiresome look. 'Can I help you?'

Marik said, 'We want to have a look at those scales you're selling.'

Akogi smiled slightly. 'Too late – someone already got them.'

Tory closed her eyes, shaking her head. '_Damn_ it. I knew Kaiba would get here before us.'

Akogi shrugged. 'That's the way the cookie –' He paused, frowning slightly. 'What's wrong with 'ya head?'

Tory's hand went to the wound on her head. It was bleeding again. 'Oh, that? Nothing too serious.'

Akogi's bright eyes narrowed. 'You three didn't happen to be at the airport during the gun firing, did you?' He glanced at Yami, who had dust from the wall on the jacket....must have settled there after a bullet had hit the wall and crumbled it.

Tory jumped to the opportunity. 'Yeah. We came to get the scales, but Kaiba sent his henchmen to slow us –'

Yami clamped a hand over her mouth. He said to Akogi, 'What she means, is that...we were supposed to be helping Kaiba, but his goons thought we were trying to steal from him.'

'You're a bad liar, Yugi. Yeah, I know you. Who doesn't?' Akogi got out of his chair. 'I had no idea that _you _would want the scales. Perhaps they're of more value than I thought.' He turned to Tory. 'Tell me...what do they mean to you?'

'Nothing –' Yami began, but Akogi cut him off.

'I wasn't asking you, Yugi. I was asking your lady friend.'

_Oh, man_... Tory thought, rolling her eyes. 'They're...' She paused, looked at Yami. He shook his head. Marik, however, nodded.

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'So – these three thousand year old scales are dangerous?' Akogi asked, eyebrow raised slightly. By now, he was sitting on his desk, and the other three on three other seats. Tory had just told him all the background on both the Millennium and Essence Items, and how they were connected.

Tory licked her dry lips. 'Yep.'

'And Kaiba wants them all? But you already have one?'

'Yep.'

Akogi leant over his desk, picking up a small laptop. 'The least I can do is direct you to the man with the Essence Eyeball then.'

'Essence Eye.' Yami corrected him flatly.

Akogi paused, before going back to work. There was a full minute's pause, before something spat itself from the printer and floated to the floor. Marik leaned over his chair to pick it up. Grimacing, he said, 'I already knew where he was.'

'Good for you.' Akogi said, closing his laptop. 'Now...good luck on the rest of your quest. May the road rise to meet you...and so forth.'

He went back to his desk. Yami and Marik left first, and then Tory. But as she left, the guards barred her way. Tory paused, and then looked behind her to Akogi. He was standing up, and slowly walking toward her.

'Well, well. I didn't think that those scales were worth anything.' He paused a few feet from Tory, sinisterly smiling. 'I guess I was wrong...and _you _have the Essence Tauk. It's no surprise you want the other items also. I can help you...' he slid a single finger up Tory's neck and to her chin, so gently that Tory shivered. 'If you play the cards right. Can you consider my offer?'

Tory froze. Another cold chill went down her body. But, quite suddenly, anger raced through her body and Tory's eyes sparked with complete disgust. 'Yeah, _that'll _happen...' With that, she turned and left, hopping in the elevator and racing right down to ground level.

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'Where were you?' Marik asked as Tory joined them in the foyer. He saw that she was shaking all over, and was quite flushed. Brushing her hair from her eyes, Tory muttered, 'Never mind.' She looked guiltily at Yami, before speaking to Marik again.

'We better get going. Kaiba could get to Kontan before us. It seems that using your warping magic doesn't really put us too far ahead.'

Marik folded his arms across his chest. 'It's the best we can do.' He turned and exited the building, and Tory was about to follow him, when Yami took her hand from behind.

'Are you okay?' He whispered. Tory swallowed and nodded.

'What happened?'

'Akogi thought that...hitting on me would help him get my Essence Tauk.' She turned and stared into Yami's dark eyes. 'You know...people that have the equipment to do what they want...still tend to do that –'

'HEY GUYS! Come on!' Marik shouted from outside. Tory and Yami joined him a few seconds later, Tory still looking rather flushed.

'Are we ready?' Marik asked, holding out his Millennium Rod. Tory and Yami both gave very firm nods.

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Seto Kaiba was as happy as a pig in the mud. He was missing his briefcase that held the million dollars; it had been replaced with a briefcase that held the Essence Scales. And Seto was happy that he had it instead of Tory.

He had also grabbed the location of Kontan, the Bearer of the Essence Eye, from Akogi. Seto had said that the Essence Scales were in fact for Kontan. Seto smirked – the stupid guy had believed him. So, Seto was now flying back to Japan.

Seto wasn't concerned at all about the shootout in the airport; no one knew that he had planned it. He had heard that Tory had been injured, which was an added bonus. Perhaps she'd give up the race and go back home?

Smirking again, Seto leant back in his seat and sipped a bit of wine, watching the sunset beyond his window. What a perfect day it had been for himself.

As soon as he returned home, Seto was going to boost his young secretary's payroll by a good sum. Maybe he'd throw a party for her. Because, if it hadn't been for Jemu, he wouldn't even _have _the Scales now.

-End chapter VI-

**MidnightBallad** (pointing at Akogi): AHA! I knew he wasn't right! Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I forgot to put in the time things above each paragraph, so I've decided to leave them out. Please review, and thanks for all the previous ones!


	7. In the Eye of the Beholder

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own all of my original characters...duh.

**Replies to Reviews: **

**AuroranWings: **Tory would like to say thank you for your concern :D Believe me, I think that kind of thing is _wrong_, but it is an essential ingredient to the plot later on.

**Sylvia Viridian: **Me so thick an' stupid! Um...well, once Akogi figured that those Items were important, he thought "sucking up" to Tory would quickly put him back on track.

**T-Bone: **Wow, breathe with me now! What do you mean '_and you think Tory's going to do something close to evil and she just lies_'?

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **I present to you the new chapter! Read and enjoy...and review :) Oh yeah – this ain't meant to be a friggin' Mary Sue! There's a reason why people **::coughAKOGIcough::** really like Tory!

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**Chapter VII:**

**In the Eye of the Beholder**

Mokuba was jerked from his mid-afternoon TV viewing by a brief knock on the door. Before he could answer it, the manor doors flew open and his big brother strode proudly into the entrance hall.

'Seto!' Mokuba squealed as he always does, hugging his brother around the waist. He'd always been too short to hug him around the shoulders.

Seto was in a very good mood, so he bent down and gave Mokuba the biggest hug of his life. 'Hey there. Miss me?'

Mokuba grinned. 'Not really.'

Seto frowned. 'Gee, thanks...'

Mokuba hopped a few feet away from Seto, his eyes alight with good humour. 'I had your friend from work with me! We watched movies all night and we even played _Twister_!'

Seto smirked, raising an eyebrow. 'Oh? Well, where is my friend?' Someone tapped him on the shoulder. Seto spun around and found himself standing face-to-face with a girl who looked about fourteen or fifteen, her light brown fringe falling into her eyes, which were slightly larger than normal, as they sat behind a pair of slim glasses. This was Jemu Korekuta.

'_Korede _(here),' Jemu said, grinning just as Mokuba had done. 'Get what you wanted?'

Seto's face lit up. 'Thanks to you.'

'Do I get a raise?' Jemu said, obviously hopeful.

'Maybe.' Seto said with a wink.

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Kontan Oshitaka had served in the second World War alongside the Americans, which was quite a strange thing to do back then. Now, however, Kontan was well known amongst many military units in the United States, and many officers asked him to fly overseas to give them advice and attend seminars – all for his knowledge of battle.

But there was a slight problem: Kontan didn't leave his house. Because he was tired and weary from a certain item he held.

When he was in the war, Kontan had been visited by a strange man in his dreams. And when he woke up, he woke up screaming, and woke up with one silver, bulging eye. Kontan was the not-so-proud Bearer of the Essence Eye. As strange as this item was, Kontan was bound to it and would not let it go.

But fate was about to pass his way.

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Exhausted from two time-travels from one spot on the planet to another, Tory and Yami followed Marik through the quiet streets of a Japanese town that neither of them knew – and couldn't be bothered to ask about. What they _were _interested in, however, was how Marik knew this man.

'It's not a very long story,' Marik had explained. 'The gossiping media just decided to do a newspaper article on poor Mister Oshitaka one day, and they had a photograph of him in the newspaper. Sitting in amongst the US soldiers was Kontan, with the Essence Eye trapped in his skull.'

'And you did nothing about it before because...?' Yami questioned him, and Marik went quiet.

'Because I did not think it had any significance at the time, is that alright with you..._Pharaoh_?' He finally answered, voice as cold as ice. Yami said nothing – he needed all of his strength to hold himself from whacking Marik over the head.

After a few minutes more of walking in silence, Marik turned into a small, run-down street that was occupied by old-style apartment blocks. It was a wet day up above: rain trickled from the sky, and thunder (once again) sounded. Down on the ground, it sounded even louder.

'What is it with storms and foreboding places?' Tory whispered as she jumped a large puddle. She noticed that Marik had stopped and was ascending a flight of stairs to a particularly dank-looking apartment.

'Goody-goody...' Tory muttered.

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The walls of Kontan's living room were dark green, and odd pieces of furniture sat all around the room. The ceiling was made of dark floorboards, from which hung a wrought iron electric chandelier. Old paintings hung on the walls, their canvases faded with time. Also pinned up on the walls were old-fashioned rifles used back in WWII and a deer head on a plaque.

Kontan himself sat in a rocking chair by the window, watching the rain trickle down the glass and smoking through a long wooden pipe. When Marik, Tory and Yami entered, he turned to them with a tired look in his grey eye. His other eye (completely silver) glared angrily at them. The Essence Eye.

'Forgive the intrusion,' Marik began. 'But we need to –'

'What do you want?' He croaked softly. 'Can't you leave a miserable old man is peace? Ever since that newspaper article, everyone's been wanting to talk to me.' Kontan turned back to the window. 'Ever since I got this confounded eye...'

'That's what we want to talk to you about.' Yami said softly, dragging the old man's face away from the window. 'The eye.'

Kontan's face grew dark. 'So, you're just like all the others? What do you want – take me away to do experiments on me? I've told everyone, I'm not leavin' this house!'

Marik snapped, 'We don't want to make you leave...'

Tory saw him playing with the Millennium Rod behind his back. Shaking her head, she just continued to listen to the argument.

'What are you going to do...rip it out?' Kontan smiled a crooked smile. 'Good luck, young man. I've fought in the war, hand-to-hand combat without a rifle to speak of!'

Amongst his rambling, Marik's Rod began to glow with a dark violet light. Tory's eyes were still on it...and when Marik went to bring it forth, Tory slapped his hand back and stepped forward.

'We respect everything you believe, Mister Oshitaka, but if you keep that eye for any longer then you will be in grave danger!' Tory said loudly.

With that, Kontan leapt to his feet, his chair sliding back into the wall, crashing loudly against it. A painting fell from the wall. 'Get out of my house! I want nothing to do with you younglings!'

'We just want to talk –'

Yami was cut off as Kontan came toward him, Essence Eye bright with gold light. 'Get OUT! Now!'

Marik gritted his teeth and left. Tory followed him, and Yami gave Kontan a sad look before leaving also.

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'Why'd you have to go stop me?' Marik shouted, rounding on Tory. 'We could have the Essence Eye and be out of there by now!'

Tory's face was tinged pink. 'I stopped you because the magic that your Rod holds would probably kill Kontan in shock –'

'It'd be easier to get the eye –'

'Shut up. I'm not finished. Don't you think it's a little much to come bashing through his door, question him about the Essence Eye, and then rip it out of his head? We should have told him about it first!'

Marik was pink like Tory. 'A big help that did you with Akogi!'

'That's enough!' Yami said, breaking the argument up. 'Marik, Tory's right. We _can't _just take the eye from Kontan.'

Marik's eyes were bright with anger. 'You only think that because you're friendly with Tory.'

'Then why are you here, Marik?'

Marik stared at Tory, face twisted into a scowl. 'What?'

Tory answered him with a blank face. 'Why are you here? Do you want the Essence Items for the same reasons as Kaiba...or are you on our side? Because we'll need a little bit of trust – do I daresay "_friendship_" – to get through this.'

Marik turned up his nose at Tory. 'I'm on your side.'

'I'm not so sure about that. Why do you _really _want to help us, Marik?' Tory questioned him. When Marik didn't answer, Tory just smiled and went over to Yami. 'We better find a place to stay, it's going to pour soon.'

Yami agreed with a nod. He turned to Marik. 'Coming?'

'No. I'll meet you guys back here in two hours.' Marik swung his Rod to his side, and Yami and Tory vanished in a flicker of light. He had returned them home. He knew that Yugi would have to get back to his grandpa, and Tory to her parents.

Sighing deeply, Marik went off down the opposite end of the street. He found himself running over his brief argument with Tory in his head. They had only been working together for a day, and he still didn't want to tell the truth to Tory –

Marik paused in mid stride as he saw a black limousine driving up the street. The bonnet of the limo had a faint 'KC' printed on it. Marik froze. Seto was already here?!

'Great!' Marik hissed to no one, scurrying off the road and leaping behind a pile of old cardboard boxes. The loose gravel on the road skipped as the limo parked outside of Kontan Oshitaka's apartment. Two people got out of it – Seto Kaiba, of course, and a younger girl with glasses. She was holding a small, leather case in her hand, and was talking quietly with Seto as they stood at the front door. Seto wrung the doorbell.

'... Well, they're taking their time, aren't they?' The younger girl was saying to Seto. 'You think that they would have the eye by now.'

Seto pressed the doorbell again. 'Oh, they're here. I have no idea where, but they're here.'

The girl grinned. 'What, can you smell them?'

'_Come in_.' a voice said to Seto and his assistant from an intercom next to the doorbell. '_Just the man_. _The little girl can get back in the car._'

Seto exchanged looks with the girl, before he took the black case from her and entered the apartment. Turning away from the door, the girl made her way back to the limo, sliding into the back seat and slamming the door shut.

'This is just..._peachy_.' Marik whispered to himself.

-End chapter VII-

**MidnightBallad: **Man, that chapter was crap. You see, I was half asleep whilst writing it, and also cranky (to put it nicely). Yami's out of character, Tory has too big a role, Seto has too _little _role...AHHHHH!

**::sigh:: **Oh well. I promise the next chapter will be better. Until next time ;)


	8. You snooze, You lose

**Disclaimer: **Put simply, I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I do own all of my original characters...duh.

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **I thought all you guys – I know there's only three of 'ya, but I don't care – had abandoned the story cause of the slow appearance of reviews...pfft. I plan to re-write the previous chapter some time soon, but as for now, enjoy this one! Serious foreshadowing in this chapter!

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**Chapter VIII:**

**You Snooze, You Lose**

Back in Domino, a storm had set in, and now rain lashed furiously against the windows of Yugi's bedroom. At the previous moment, he was packing a bag full of very random items, mostly food, for he and Tory now had a clean two-day ticket out of Domino; apparently, Yugi and Tory were both staying at Joey's house for two days to finish off an assignment. Of course, Joey would have to cover up for them, but at least Yugi and Tory would be able to get out easier and keep moving on with Marik.

Yugi then realised that his Millennium Puzzle was glowing. He began to fiddle with it, trying to figure out what was going on, but it was useless. Sighing, he quite his fiddling and went back to packing his bag.

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'_Pharaoh! Pharaoh!'_

_Pharaoh Atemu turned around, seeing his friend Mana running toward him, her face flushed and hot. She stopped only centimetres from him, bending over double and crying through pants, 'Someone's raided her tomb!'_

'_Do not lie to me Mana...are you telling the truth?'_

'_Yes, my Pharaoh! The door has been dug up a-and the coffin...'_

_Atemu froze, his heart beating in his throat. 'Have you any idea who has done this, Mana?'_

_Mana shook her head, and tears leaked from her eyes. 'Gods, Pharaoh. What do we do?'_

_Atemu did not know what to do. He just closed his eyes and sat down in the middle of the floor, whispering over and over, 'He stole the Crest of Evergiving...he stole the crest –'_

'_Pharaoh?' Mana interrupted timidly. 'What are you talking about?'_

'_He raided her tomb, opened the coffin, and took the Crest of Evergiving from around her neck. He will curse it. I made a mistake...'_

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Tory awoke with a very loud scream, clutching the Essence Tauk in her fist. Her body trembled, the rain outside made the window shake, all affecting the images that ran through Tory's head.

'No...what just happened?' Tory whispered to herself. She had closed her eyes for a second, just to nap before she met Yami at the park, and then she had slipped into a dream.

Maybe it wasn't a dream. It was a nightmare.

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Seto made his way up the pine staircase and into Kontan Oshitaka's living room, staring around at the terrible décor and trying to find the old man in amongst the mess.

'What?' Kontan asked, narrowing his human eye at the CEO. 'Who are you?'

Seto smirked a little. 'Seto Kaiba, from Domino. Head of the Kaiba Corp company.'

Kontan mouthed an 'ah, I thought so', before he leant back in his chair, puffing a ring of smoke from his pipe. 'What business do you want with me, Mister Kaiba?'

Seto said, 'That eye you have there, Kontan; it's very interesting.'

Kontan's human eye grew to a mere slit. 'Oh, really?'

'I am willing to pay for the surgery to have it removed, if you will. That eye is of value to me, and I understand that you hate to bear its power?' Seto said with a dark look on his face. 'Well, sir?'

Kontan took a bit to figure out what was happening. 'You! You're like those crazy kids that just came in here! I won't stand for this, I'm calling the police!'

'Do as you will,' a female voice called from the door. 'If you listen to my boss, perhaps you'll be okay after all this.' The girl bent down, yanking the phone cord from the wall. Kontan got out of his chair, drawing a knife that appeared to be hidden underneath his shirt.

'You'll have to kill me to get what you want!' And then Kontan threw the knife. Unfortunately, his eyesight was not as it used to be, and the knife struck the wall too far right of the girl.

'Be careful, Jemu,' Seto said to his young assistant. 'This man's out of his mind.'

'I am _not_!' Kontan yelled, hands wringing by his side.

Jemu laughed, though her voice was shaky after she'd almost been hit by a flying knife. 'That's the thing about old people: when they _get _old, they also become stubborn.'

Kontan cracked, ran straight for her. But Seto was faster, bringing out something from his pocket very fast, which stabbed Kontan deep in the stomach. The old man groaned, before dropping stone cold to the floor. Seto wrenched the syringe from the man's gut and just threw it away. He knelt down beside Kontan, rolling the man onto his back. His human eye was closed, but the Essence Eye winked up at him.

'You're just going to take it out?' Jemu asked hesitantly. '..._Rip _it out?'

Seto tapped the Essence Eye with a fingernail. 'If Bakura could do it, I don't see any reason why I can't.'

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Still hiding outside, Marik saw Seto's assistant run from Kontan's house, punching a number into her mobile phone. Marik could see her face was stricken with panic, but before he heard her speak to whoever was on the other end of the phone, she slipped back into the limo.

Just then, Marik heard a scream that would not disgrace one of those computer-made ones from horror movies. Turning to the doorway into Kontan's apartment, he saw Seto Kaiba striding out onto the footpath, clutching a tiny black box in his hand.

Marik cussed and waved his Millennium Rod. It shimmered in the light before becoming dull once again. He watched the limo with 'KC' on its bonnet pull away, and several moments later he heard the unmistakable whirring of sirens in the distance. The girl must have called an ambulance.

The medics were there in no time, dragging Kontan Oshitaka from his home and into the back of the ambulance on a stretcher. Marik caught a glimpse of Kontan's face – one side of it was fine, eye screwed up in pain, yet the other was stranger: it was dark, as if rubbed in coal; bruised also. Marik swallowed deeply. Seto had ripped out Kontan's Essence Eye.

_So_, Marik thought. _That's it. Seto has the Eye and the Scales. And all we have is the Tauk_. Shaking his head, he said aloud, 'This isn't our race.'

'Marik!' came Yami's strong, angry voice. 'What did you do?'

Marik climbed up from his crouched position, sighing. 'Nothing. Kaiba did it.'

Yami and Tory had appeared from nowhere due to the power of the Millennium Rod, Yami carrying a shoulder bag full of stuff. Tory turned her eyes to the ambulance, its flashing red lights making her eyes change from green to brown and back again.

'Oh, _good grief_...' she muttered in a false English accent. 'What just happened?'

Marik was also watching the ambulance. 'Seto went in. The girl went in, then came out a minute later. And then Seto came out. And _then _Kontan came out, and I'll also point out now that he was missing an eye.'

Yami gave Marik a long stare. 'Are you sure?'

'Positive. I heard Kontan screaming.'

Yami lowered his head, gritting his teeth. 'We were too late _again_.'

'I can't believe this,' Tory said in a low voice. 'Seto's got two Essence items now –'

'And we only have one!' Marik cried, throwing his arms in the air and seating himself on a box. He then noticed Tory giving him a rather peculiar look.

'What?' Marik asked, as if worried.

Tory reached into the pocket of the jeans she wore, pulling out a very long, blue-grey shard. 'Actually, we have two items also.'

Yami's eyes opened wide. 'Is that...?'

'Yep,' Tory said, gazing upon the shard. 'The very last piece of the Essence Rod. And it still counts.'

Marik was also staring at the shard. 'Where'd you get that?'

'I've had it for ages. Ever since my...brother had a breakdown and Yami sent him to the Shadow Realm. I always thought that if the Essence Rod were destroyed, the rest of the items would go with it – seeing as there's still one piece left of it...'

Marik jumped to his feet. 'Well, let's get rid of the shard now, and get this over and done with.'

But Tory didn't let go of the shard. She just stared at it, wondering.

'Tory?' Yami asked, breaking her thoughts. The girl snapped up, pocketing the shard.

'I had a dream this morning.' Tory said quickly.

Yami raised an inquisitive eyebrow. 'About what?'

'About me...Akunriou –' Tory said, but Marik cut her off.

'Akunriou the Evergiver?'

Tory and Yami turned to Marik. 'What?' They asked in perfect unison.

Yami asked alone, 'How did you know that?'

Marik flicked some rainwater from his Millennium Rod (A/N: Major plot point here!). 'When I became a tomb keeper, there was something about a girl named Akunriou written in the scriptures, something that my father said was a lie. The scriptures said that a cursed girl fought against the magic of the Shadow Realm...the Essence Items...but was felled by the priests of her lover, the Pharaoh. On the night that she died, the Pharaoh presented her with the Tauk you wear now Tory. The scriptures said that the King of Thieves broke into her tomb after her death, stole the Crest that Akunriou wore and cursed it, forcing its powers to intertwine with that of the Essence Rod.' He gave Tory a strange look, one she'd never seen before. 'I knew that Akunriou was _you_, Tory. That's how I found out about the Essence Items. And that's the truth.'

'So...you knew all along?' Yami said slowly. 'You knew that Tory's necklace was an Essence Item and how it was created?'

'In a word, yes.' Marik said quietly. 'And I know how to get to the other Essence Items.'

Yami turned his head to one side, much like a confused dog. 'How?'

'Bakura cursed Tory's necklace like the Essence Rod. He cursed the other items as well. To put it easily, Bakura made six out of seven of the Essence Items.'

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**MidnightBallad: **Bet you didn't see that one coming, cause I made it up as I went along. True story...please review, so I'm not confused about whether to continue this story or not.

I'm going to answer/comment on reviews here and now :)

-0-

**Sylvia Viridian: **Quite a strange pair, Seto and Jemu. They aren't supposed to be paired intentionally, but if that's what you want...anyway, thanks for the feedback on character stuffs.

**AuroranWings: **Hehe, thanks. I read your Kingdom Hearts stuff the other day, but I didn't review cause the site was down. I luv em, they're great, I'm a huge KH fan :D

**T-Bone: **Oops **::sweatdrop::** I guess I have. And I did it with this chapter too. Sorry, I'll try not to gather back the cliffies!


	9. The Creator

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, and neither do you, FOOLS! HAHA!

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Here's the new chapter to fill in the big plot hole – Bakura can do some explaining for us. Enjoy!

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**Chapter IX:**

**The Creator**

'That's impossible,' Yami growled. 'Bakura would not have had the knowledge back then to do such a thing.'

'So you say,' Marik muttered. 'Ask him yourself, you'll get the same answer out of the guy.'

In her head, Tory's brain was churning over questions. She had been in a few off-putting situations with Bakura, and she didn't fancy having to talk to him again. But she still asked Marik, 'We'll need his help, won't we?'

Yami glanced at her sideways. 'Hmm? What're you talking about?'

Tory spoke quietly. 'Bakura created six out of seven items...that means he knows where the rest of the Essence Items are, doesn't he?'

Marik saw that Tory didn't like that, but he said nothing of it. He didn't want to start another row again, after all. Eventually, he just sighed deeply and nodded.

'You know Bakura, so you talk to him.' Yami said, looking back to Marik, who held up his hands to Yami.

'Hold on a sec, Bakura doesn't _trust _me. After the Battle City Tournament, he'd rather rip out my soul than help me.' Marik snickered afterward, recognising that he had the upper hand in this to-be argument.

Yami nodded in agreement, paused, and then shook his head. 'I suppose Bakura would not trust me, either. But if you talk to Ryou –'

'Ryou wouldn't know,' Tory pointed out, still talking quietly. 'He...the memories...' She took a deep breath and smiled. 'Fine, I'll talk to him.'

'Are you sure?' Yami asked with doubt in his voice. Tory whacked him on the arm with the back of her hand.

'I'm not going to see him alone – you and Marik will come, too.'

'We will?' The two boys asked in unison, as if disappointed.

Tory watched as the ambulance, now with Kontan lying in the back, drove away down the street. 'Yeah, and fast, too.'

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In the back of Seto Kaiba's limousine, the young CEO was busy polishing his newly claimed Essence Eye. He was so happy that he had, once again, beaten Tory to another Item. He tried not to smile, but he couldn't help it.

Jemu glanced at him from the other side of the limo. 'What're you so happy about?'

Still smiling, Seto placed the Essence Eye in the black foam packaging inside its little box. 'There are only two items left, Jemu. I have two, and Tory hasn't got any (A/N: He doesn't know Tory has the Tauk). Unless she and her two friends can come up with a brilliant plan to steal those items before I get them, then I've already won this race.'

Jemu raised an eyebrow. 'Oh, really?'

'When all the Essence Items are together, they unlock the place where the Essence Puzzle, the master of all the Essence Items, is hidden. And once the place is unlocked, I can take the Puzzle and use it for myself. So far, I only have the Scales and the Eye, but I'm well on the trail of the Essence Ankh (A/N: Key?) is.'

'So...you're saying that even if Tory gets an item, she'll have to give it to you if she wants to get the Essence Puzzle also?'

Seto put the little black box containing the Essence Eye on top of a larger black box, where the Essence Scales were being kept. With a sweeping smile in Jemu's direction, he leant back in his seat and awaited the trip back toward the airport.

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The door to Ryou Bakura's house swung open, and the white-haired teen was greeted by three familiar faces:

Tory Bryson, Yugi Motou and Marik Ishtar.

'Hello?' Ryou said. Not a greeting – a question. 'Can I help you three?'

'Bakura can help us.' Yugi said rather darkly for his young body.

'Bakura?'

Ryou suddenly scrunched up his eyes and slammed the door in the trio's faces. Tory giggled. 'Yeah, you were right, Yugi.'

She, Yugi and Marik turned as Ryou came walking down from the side of his house, eyes clouded with a strange evil that was almost unexplainable unless one knew this teen's past.

'Bakura,' Tory said with a short nod, no longer giggling. 'Still occupying Ryou's body, I see.'

Bakura just laughed under his breath, before turning to Marik. 'So..._you're _here too, are you? What are you doing with these two?'

'That's none of your business.' Marik said, his eyes also dark.

Bakura addressed Yugi. 'Ah, still following Tory around, I see. And with Marik Ishtar? Well, well, this will be an entertaining story –'

'Can it, _ahou_, we don't want to hear it.' Tory snapped. 'Why we are here is a serious matter, and come hell or high water, we're going to get the information out of you that we need.'

Bakura gave her a very icy look. 'Last time we spoke, you insulted me; now you threaten me. You should learn to hold your tongue, Tory.'

Tory just said, 'Likewise.'

Bakura held his head high and spoke to Yugi and Marik. 'I don't want to cause a brawl today, so hurry up and ask me whatever it is before I lose my temper.'

Marik pointed to the Tauk around Tory's neck. 'The Essence Items.'

Bakura took a quick breath through his nose, as if shocked.

Marik lowered his finger. 'Or have you forgotten them, Bakura?'

Bakura could think of nothing to say, before he clicked his tongue and went over to Tory. 'You found out about my creating of the other Items, did you?'

'Of course,' Tory said, feeling a deep hate bubble within her. 'You cursed my Crest, and created the other Essence Items. We want to know how, and where the rest of them are.'

Bakura was, once again, lost for words. What did Tory want with the Essence Items? Had she suddenly figured out their power?

Bakura rounded on Marik. 'You told her, didn't you?'

'She had a right to know just how dangerous her...Crest...Tauk...is. Or, how dangerous it has _become_.'

'You backstabbing lowlife.'

Yugi placed his hands on his hips and said stubbornly, 'What happened to you not wanting to start a brawl, Bakura?'

Bakura hissed, 'Shut _up_, Yugi. You know nothing of this – maybe the Pharaoh within you does, but _you _certainly don't.'

The little boy had been stood down, so he just glowered at Bakura as he continued to argue with Marik.

'Well, seeing as you've told everyone my past secret, maybe I should tell Tory some of _yours_.'

Marik looked like he was holding back the urge to punch Bakura straight in the face. Eventually, he relaxed and went silent as Yugi had.

'So...' Bakura said with a sigh. 'You know about the Essence Items. And what do you want with them?'

'Kaiba wants them,' Tory explained. 'He plans to gather six of them and then get to the Essence Puzzle. We're trying to stop him by getting the items first and destroying them.'

Bakura wiped his nose for no reason at all. 'Kaiba is smarter than I thought. He knows that by gathering them together he'll be able to unlock the tomb where the Essence Puzzle resides. Has he got any yet?'

Tory nodded. 'Two. The Scales from some American and the Eye from a man who lives not too far from here.'

Bakura said, 'I buried the Scales beneath a statue of Horus, just on the outskirts of the city where the Pharaoh Atemu once reigned. The American guy must have just dug it up. The Essence Eye...I have no idea how it got out of Egypt, but I assure you I had nothing to do with it.'

'That's great,' Tory said snappily, yet with little interest. 'We just need to know where the other items are, before Kaiba gets to them.'

For some reason, Bakura agreed. And in her head, Tory knew why: the Essence Items must be so powerful, so dangerous, that even Bakura thought they should be destroyed.

'So,' Yugi said, deciding to speak up. 'Where are the other three items?'

'Only three?'

'Tory has the Tauk and a shard of the Rod.'

'Well...the Ankh and the Ring are in Egypt, buried in the sands, in other's tombs. But the Puzzle...it is in the most secret of all places.'

Yugi took a desperate step forward. 'Where is it?'

Bakura only said darkly, 'Find out for yourselves.' And with that, he just left the trio on the road –

'Bakura, wait!' Tory said suddenly, making Bakura turn around. 'How did you create the Essence Items in the first place? And what powers do they hold? It could help us.'

Bakura thought for a second before he decided to reveal everything. 'The Essence Items were made by a power you could not understand. As for their powers – each one is different, seemingly helpful, but if not used correctly, then it can be dangerous,

'The Essence Rod controls all the elements on earth, and can also send a person into a sleep of eternal nightmares,

'The Essence Tauk has great immunities to the Shadow Realm, can also summon monsters from their cards, but is one of the darkest of all the Essence Items,

'The Essence Ankh has no real power, but once the Essence Puzzle is located, it can help unlock where it is,

'The Essence Scales send those who have sinned greatly to the Shadow Realm,

'The Essence Eye allows the wearer to see into another person's soul, and also delete selected memories,

'And the Essence Ring points out both Essence and Millennium items. Also lets the wearer transform into a Duel Monster for an hour.'

When he was done, Bakura grinned. 'Satisfied?'

Marik wasn't. 'What do you mean the Tauk is the darkest of all? And what about the Puzzle?'

Bakura did not feel like answering either of those questions. The Tauk had a secret that only _he _knew about, and the Puzzle was so dangerous that not even himself, the creator of the Essence Items, would dare even touch it. He cast a look at Yugi – not even his other personality could handle the power that the Essence Puzzle had. He glanced at Marik. _No way... _Bakura muttered, shaking his head. And then he looked at Tory. In her previous life, she may have been powerful, but now, she was a no one. Besides, the secret that her Tauk held would keep her stumbling right through this race against Kaiba.

Finally, Bakura gave in. 'The Essence Puzzle holds an evil spirit known as Samut within it. And Samut is like the God of Death himself – anything Samut touches will be sent to the Underworld, never to be brought back. It is dangerous, deadly – no one could control him. No one _can _control him.' Saying no more, Bakura went back inside his house, slammed the door, and the trio heard it lock.

'_Ahou..._' Tory repeated under her breath.

'This is serious,' Yugi said in quite a small voice. 'If Kaiba gets the Essence Puzzle first, then –'

'He can't get to the Essence Puzzle first, because we still have some of the items,' Marik pointed out. 'Still...we better hurry up.'

-End Chapter IX-

**MidnightBallad: **Done and done. Yeah, confusing, I know. You don't really need to concentrate on anything Bakura said; it's just some background info. Actually, _do _concentrate on the stuff he said on the Essence Puzzle and Tory's Tauk. More stuffs to come :)

Anyway, replies to reviews:

**Replies to Reviews: **

**Ayame akakuru Kaiba: **Aha...wow. Long review, am very delighted to answer some stuff or make comments on some of it, cause I'm bored right now. Here we go...

- Yugi annoys me, Yami is much better plus he's needed more than Yugi is.

- I have an obsession with eyes, especially the multi-coloured ones. Too much Final Fantasy X...

- Tory'll be nicer to Marik eventually.

- The receptionist was supposed to be an idiot.

- Someone swore?

- Akogi is an idiot, like his receptionist. He's too in love with himself to worry about Duel Monsters. Let's just say his brain's made of money.

- Akogi is _also _sick and an idiot, so Tory will get him back later on, don't worry :D If not, feel free to kill him yourself.

- I don't recall him drinking wine, but once again, he's got money – and he knows how to use it.

**T-Bone **and **AuroranWings: **The trio fell into a plot hole. A big one.

**Sylvia Viridian: **Jemu's only about 14 or 15 – seeing as Kaiba's heaps older, it'd probably never work between them two. So...they can just be good friends. Even if it's not Jemu, though, Kaiba still needs a girlfriend :) And don't worry about the reviewing, cause I have to go back to school very soon, so I'll be updating slower.

**CatDemon-Milala**Yeah I know, sorry :P It probably wouldn't _hurt _the guy, though. Just weaken him.


	10. Conflict

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, some rich person does, and are rolling in money from tacky merchandise.

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Good grief, I haven't updates in ages. SORRY for the wait, but the delay is a result of viruses, writing offline novels and catching up with friends from ages ago. So, here's the new chapter, and I say sorry for everything.

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**Chapter X:**

**Conflict**

Egypt was where they had to go to settle this. Tory, Yugi/Yami and Marik. Not a very likely trio, but then again, they had been working together for the past day or two now.

Seeing as it had been late when they had arrived at Kontan's place, the three of them moved a little away from Domino and found a place to have some food before night set in, so that they could get to Egypt when they were done, and hopefully beat Seto there.

Yugi and Tory ate together at a pizza bar, but Marik went off on his own, saying that he had things to do, things that Yugi figured out over his pizza.

'I bet you he's gone to contact his sister.' Yugi said, taking a whopping great big bite out of his food. 'She does know Egypt better than he does, I suppose.'

Yugi shrugged. 'I guess.'

Tory sighed and turned to gaze out the window. The sun was setting below the horizon, its bright light slowly draining away, so that the sky was orange and ascended into a strange purple haze. And with it, the entire city glowed with light.

'Pretty...' Tory muttered, watching a jet plane fly across the sky.

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On board that same jet, Jemu handed Seto a few pieces of paper, which seemed to be a list of something, hand written. Jemu hated writing things out: she was a computer girl all the way. It was how she had landed her job with Seto so easily.

'These are the diggers we hired,' Jemu said as Seto flicked through the list. 'They said they'll meet us in Cairo when we land.'

Seto nodded thoughtfully, placing the list in a pouch on the back of the seat in front of him. 'Great. I'm surprised they got workers for us at such short notice.'

Jemu shrugged. 'Meh, what're you going to do? You offered a lot of money, and people crave money.'

Seto frowned in his assistant's direction. 'What was that? "Meh"? Whatever happened to you speaking in Japanese?'

'_Sumimasen_.' Jemu apologized shortly, before turning to gaze out the window. She could see everything from where they were, even clouds wafted past the jet's wings. 'I can't wait till we get to Egypt. I've always wanted to go there...'

Seto could feel the happiness in Jemu and smiled to himself, before busying himself with filling in some paperwork.

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'So, you've joined up with Yugi?' Ishizu was asking her brother. 'To get the Essence Items?'

Marik said firmly, 'Yes, I've been trying to forget the conflict I've had with the Pharaoh.'

'Indeed?'

'So far, so good.'

Ishizu raised her eyebrows, as if impressed. 'Well, what do you need to speak to me about, brother?'

'I need your help to locate the Essence Items, and to dig them up.'

Ishizu slowly began to pace the room she was in, humming softly to herself in thought. Eventually, she stopped and faced her brother. 'I can help you, I know Egypt perhaps more than you do. But Marik, do remember the Essence Item's power.'

Marik's brow was furrowed. 'Of course not.' He turned to leave, saying, 'I'm taking Yugi and Tory to Egypt tonight. Meet us outside of the pizza bar in...' he thought. 'An hour. That okay?'

Ishizu bowed her head. 'Of course, brother.'

Her brother had almost left the room, when Ishizu called:

'Marik. Do not forget about the Essence Tauk and Tory. Remember, you must not be too close to her. To do so would be painful for the two of you.'

'What?' Marik gaped, spinning on his toes to look his older sister in the eye. '_Get to close to her_? Are you serious, Ishizu?'

It was the nod from his sister that made Marik worried all the more.

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Several hours later, Seto Kaiba's plane landed in Egypt, and he quickly went to work, his guides and diggers meeting him there and then, before both he and Jemu jumped into a chunky brown (roofless) four-wheeled-drive and were driven away from the city.

The golden sand dunes stretched out before them like an endless sea, the sky a spotless blue overhead; the sun a bright white orb. Ripples of heat (A/N: I think they're called 'thermals') rose from the sand as the 4WD passed over the sand, making everything close to the ground look as though it were wavering violently.

With no air conditioner, Seto and Jemu had to rely on the wind to keep them cool – but the wind was hot from blowing across the sand, so they both sank into their seats and waited.

And then the large stone structure rose above them: almost as yellow as the sand, marked with Egyptian hieroglyphs, almost glowing in the sun. A strange presence lurked around the pinnacle, as if there were magic lying in the sand.

'How'd you know where to look, Kaiba?' Jemu asked as she and her boss jumped from the 4WD, gazing at the pinnacle.

'Well, it was –'

'Akogi?!'

Seto turned to Jemu. 'What? No.'

Jemu shook her head and pointed at the pinnacle. 'I'm serious – it's Akogi.'

Seto's eyes whipped to where his assistant was pointing. Standing there, in the shade made by the pinnacle, was Akogi Kuga, surrounded by diggers and – typically for Akogi – riflemen. Still dressed in his business suit, the redhead stepped forward, greeting Seto and Jemu with a sly grin.

'You...' Seto hissed. 'What do you want?'

'You see, Kaiba,' Akogi began, picking some sand from beneath his nails. 'I realise now that those Essence Items are worth a truckload 'o money. So I've been digging. Digging for quite a while, actually. And I've beaten you to one.'

Akogi turned to one of his riflemen, who held out a long box. Akogi took it, popped the clasp and opened the box. Sitting inside of it was a dark silver ankh. The Essence Ankh – Akogi had gotten to it first.

'There are only two more items to find now, excluding the Puzzle: the Ring and the Rod. And believe me, Kaiba; I am well on my way to finding them.' Akogi said, snapping the box shut. 'Now...if you linger here any more, I am afraid my men will have to shoot you – and your lady friend there. _Sayonara, _tough guy.'

With that, Akogi was gone, his diggers and riflemen following him. Their team loaded themselves into their cars and were off.

'_Sayonara_, you stupid fu –'

Seto poked Jemu in the back. 'That's enough. We're not done yet.' He made his way back to the 4WD, hopped into it, waited for Jemu to slide in too.

'What are we going to do?' Jemu asked her boss, who gave instructions to the driver, and slowly the car began to move off. Jemu's eyes widened. 'No, Kaiba! We can't follow them, they'll shoot us.'

'Jemu...' Seto said gravely. 'I have two Essence Items in my possession. I think it's time I made use of them, don't you?'

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Yugi and Tory, who had been waiting outside of the pizza bar for half an hour, were suddenly greeted by Marik and Ishizu Ishtar. Yugi greeted Ishizu with a huge grin, but Tory just nodded her head. Why the heck was Marik bringing _more _people into this race?

'This is my sister, Ishizu,' Marik said for Tory. 'She's going to help us find our way to the other Essence Items.'

'Oh...' Tory said, before asking, 'Well...are we going?'

Ishizu turned to her brother. 'Marik, if you will.'

Marik raised his Millennium Rod, there was a flash of light, and the four outside of the pizza bar were gone.

-End chapter X-

**MidnightBallad: **Yes, it's short, I know, I'm sorry. I have another fic I want to update, though, but I haven't even started the chapter. Anyway, I won't blame you if you review slow – because I update slow :P


	11. Love or Lust?

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh **:mumblemumble:**

**MidnightBallad's Notes: **Holy crud on a stick. It's been a _long _time, hasn't it? Well, I've finally updated, so yes. It's a little short, but I'm warming myself up again, if you get it. You might find that my writing style has changed, too.

P.S: Seriously thinking about re-writing this story, but it's up to you guys...

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**Chapter XI:**

**Love or Lust?**

Tory couldn't remember much of the warp. Everything just seemed so hazy, and she didn't know why.

But slowly, she began to realise why.

There were figures walking around her, blurred at first, and then they became sharper. The wind whistled like a harp string being plucked carefully, and very suddenly, things changed –

_The grave robber had been dressed all in black, and had been digging for at least an hour, but finally he had come to his prize. And after he'd come to his prize, he'd cranked open the sarcophagus and taken the cold stone for himself._

_Unearthing the lifeless body of Akunriou hadn't had much effect on Bakura. He merely looked upon it as payback. He would be able to fuse together his own magic and create another darkened, twin Millennium Item, just as he had before with the Essence Rod._

_And now that he had Akunriou's Crest of Evergiving, he didn't care much about cleaning up her tomb. He left it open to the air and to other grave robbers – the only thing he _did _do was close the young woman's sarcophagus. Then he made a run for it._

_A large black stallion had been tied up just outside the opened tomb, waiting for Bakura to arrive. Even the horse seemed to smell the death on its mater's hands when he reached out for it. Something seemed to whisper through the night, as if nagging at Bakura for what he'd done._

_As he rode, Bakura laughed to himself. He had only a few Essence Items to create before he had an entire set. And he had plans for each and every one of them, but in particular, a very _personal _power for Akunriou's Crest. And the thought of it being put to work, creating misery for whoever wore it, made Bakura laugh even more._

_The power that was going to be put into the Crest – eventually to become the Essence Tauk – wasn't one that would hurt the wearer _physically. _It was much more of a mental pain._

_Lust was a very powerful emotion, after all. But the Tauk would not cause the wearer to yearn for something: it would be the other way around. The power would cause others to yearn for the wearer, so much that it would hurt._

_Bakura couldn't believe his genius. A fragment of his own self would go into the Tauk, for indeed, he once yearned for Akunriou to be with him. Of course, his greed had almost sent his soul to the Underworld, but being a thief, Bakura knew he was just about as slippery as a wet fish._

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'Tory? Are you still with us?'

Tory opened her eyes. She was lying on a prickly bed in some sort of hotel. It was decorated with tacky, fake Egyptian artefacts. Downtown trash, perhaps. However, to her delight, it was lit by many candles, a fetish of Tory's.

Tory noticed Ishizu and Yami sitting on the end of her bed. Ishizu did not look very happy, but Yami appeared calm. Perhaps asking him for an explanation would be the best option.

Yami spoke before Tory could: 'The warp may have gotten to you after a while. I'm not surprised – our bodies must have lost track of time by now. You must have just shut down. Still, Ishizu booked us into this hotel. You should have seen the receptionist's face.'

Tory nodded. She was wondering about the vision she'd just had. No one had been speaking in it, only moving. Within the vision, Tory saw a face, _knew _that face. Bakura just seemed to be everywhere nowadays.

'Are you alright?' Ishizu asked kindly. 'You look flushed.'

'Tired...' Tory mumbled, before asking, 'Where'd Marik go?'

'He has been very quiet ever since I arrived.'

'Why?'

'I gave him a warning, and perhaps he has taken it to heart – he seemed very worried.'

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Marik had taken his sister's warning to heart... "_Do not forget about the Essence Tauk and Tory. Remember, you must not be too close to her. To do so would be painful for the two of you_". Marik knew Ishizu was quite out of the ordinary, but still, it was a strange thing to say.

Marik was on the rooftop of their hotel – _The City Ibis _– and had been all afternoon. Twilight had descended on Cairo by now, and the sounds and smells of the city wafted up even to where Marik sat.

He wasn't surprised that Tory had just keeled over after the warp. But he was worried what would happen to her: in Egypt, there was definitely something here that would spark a thought or vision of the past.

A door behind him opened, the one that led up onto the rooftop. There wasn't much up here to do, so he couldn't see why anyone would want to bother him. If they did, it was a long way to the ground, too.

Marik was surprised that it was Tory, not Ishizu, who came walking through the door. His eyes immediately fell on the Essence Tauk around her neck; it seemed brighter than usual.

'Hi...' Tory said in a strange tone. It was almost timid to Marik.

Marik didn't reply. Instead, he turned back to look out over Cairo.

'I want to ask you something about my Tauk – Crest.' Tory said, quickly correcting herself.

Marik rolled his eyes and turned back to her. 'What?'

Tory walked slowly toward him, standing next to the pile of crates he sat on, and cleared her throat. 'There's good magic in the Crest, I know; Bakura said so. But you know as well as I that there's also bad magic. Black magic.' She tried to look Marik in the eye, but she never liked it, just as she never did anyone else. 'So, what _is _it?'

Marik raised an eyebrow. 'How should I know?'

'Well...you're here, aren't you? You're helping Yami and I, when you used to hate him.'

Marik almost smiled. 'I was possessed.'

'_Right_. But that doesn't explain why you're helping us. Do I dare say you're "protecting us", Marik?'

Marik nearly fell off the roof. 'Give me one good reason why I'd protect that scrawny excuse for a duellist!'

'Because,' Tory sighed. 'He saved you, didn't he? Wasn't he the one who kicked the evil spirit from within you?'

Laughing under his breath, Marik replied, 'Maybe. That's none of your business. It's all in the past now, Tory.'

Tory was careful about what she said next. 'So is Akunriou. But those memories are still with me. They always will be. I can't let go.'

'Learn to.'

'Bite me.'

Marik grinned. Tory was serious when she said it.

'All I want to know is,' Tory began again. 'What is in my Tauk that I should be so worried about?'

Marik didn't want to tell her what Bakura had told him. One, it was embarrassing for her, two, he didn't want to admit to what his sister had said.

'... Don't know.' Marik answered.

Tory frowned. 'Please, just tell me.'

'No way.'

'Marik! Damn it, it's my Tauk, I should know what it'll do to me!'

'You're selfish if you think that. Besides, what you don't know won't hurt you.' Marik replied hotly.

Tory chewed her lip. 'What do I have to do to get you to tell me?'

Marik pointed at the railing of the hotel's roof. 'Jump.'

'Come off it.'

'Seriously? No...I'd have to get you to tell Yami to get out of here. Then you'd have to kill Akogi and Seto Kaiba. And when that's done, you'd have to get rid of me.' Marik said darkly. It was if the shadows reacted to his words: everything became cold quite suddenly. Tory then realised it was windy.

Tory gritted her teeth. 'Why?'

'Cause,' Marik said. 'There's a little bit of Bakura in that Tauk.'

Tory seemed startled. 'Come again?'

'Don't you remember...? That night, three thousand years ago, when your mother was killed?' Marik asked quietly.

The words flashed across Tory's mind like a whip –

_It's no use, Akunriou! Give into me, now!_

'I still don't understand,' Tory said, voice now shaky. 'Why would Bakura...keep that in there?'

'Ever wonder why Yami was naturally drawn to you? Ever wonder why Bakura wanted you after that storm? Ever wonder why Akogi hit on you so suddenly?' Marik said, now very into the conversation.

Tory shook her head. 'Yami was just looking at the past, Bakura wanted my power. And Akogi's just a sick individual...'

'No,' Marik muttered. 'Bakura's feelings from ancient times reflected onto others. Yami, Bakura, Akogi...all of them were drawn to you because of the Tauk. It's cursed, Tory.'

Tory didn't know why, but she could feel tears running down her face. So what if none of those guys really liked her? But then again, Yami had been someone special.

Marik was now on his feet. He almost looked relieved that he'd let out that secret to Tory.

'That's why you're here?' Tory whispered. 'To make sure that no one would...attack me like Bakura?'

'That and the fact that the entire world is in trouble.' Marik answered flatly.

Tory finally looked back at him, teary-eyed. 'Thank you, Marik. I guess I finally know.'

Marik nodded. He didn't say anything. Eventually he went to leave, when he called back, 'Oh, Tory: Akogi's in town. You better keep your distance.'

Tory said something, but Marik didn't really hear it. She was crying real tears by now.

-End Chapter XI-

**MidnightBallad: **Sorry that was kind of short – and pointless. But hey, you found out about Tory's Tauk (woohoo...). Time to go now, bye-bye!


End file.
